The government has given the green light for taking over almost 12 hectares of land from the Šilalė district municipality. It is planned that the battalion will eventually comprise around 600 troops, with the first ones expected to be deployed in Pajuris next year.
“This is a big step that shows the development of the entire national defense system,” Deputy Defense Minister Giedrimas Jeglinskas told BNS.
The Brigadier General Motiejus Pečiulionis Artillery Battalion is assigned to the Lithuanian army’s brigade Žemaitija, which was inaugurated last year.
Officials in Šilalė expect that the establishment of the battalion will mean contracts to local businesses and new jobs for people in the district.
The Žemaitija brigade also includes the Lithuanian Grand Duke Kęstutis Mechanized Infantry Battalion stationed in Tauragė and the Lithuanian Grand Duke Butigeidis Dragoon Battalion stationed in Klaipėda.
The Lithuanian Armed Forces have three brigades consisting of some 9,300 professional military service personnel and almost 1,800 people in their mandatory initial military service.
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